1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a printing apparatus for processing print data which is transmitted from a host computer to generate the print data in accordance with an instruction of the user, generating image data, and actually printing onto a medium such as a paper or the like. The invention also relates to a print control method of such a printing apparatus and a recording medium in which a print control program for such a print control method has been stored.
2. Related Background Art
A printing system which satisfies functions such that not only a printing apparatus prints print data that is generated from a host computer but also an information obtaining and an environmental setting of the printing apparatus are performed from the host computer has been known.
FIG. 1 is a diagram for explaining a first print data processing method embodying a method of performing an information obtaining and an environmental setting of a printing apparatus from a host computer.
In FIG. 1, reference numeral 100 denotes a host computer; 150 a printing apparatus; and 180 a predetermined communication medium for connecting the host computer 100 and printing apparatus 150.
Further, the host computer 100 is constructed by: an application section 101 for providing a graphic user interface to the user and generating image data adapted to a purpose of the user; a printer driver 102 for converting the image data generated by the application section 101 into page description language (hereinafter, abbreviated to PDL) data which can be printed by the printing apparatus 150; a transmission buffer 103 for temporarily storing the PDL data formed by the printer driver 102; an I/F driver 104 for transmitting the PDL data stored in the transmission buffer to the printing apparatus 150 and transmitting and receiving information to/from the printing apparatus 150; and a utility section 105 for obtaining the information of the printing apparatus 150 and providing it to the graphic user interface and for changing the environmental setting of the printing apparatus 150 in accordance with a demand of the user.
The printing apparatus 150 is constructed by: an I/F driver 151 for receiving the PDL data and environmental setting transmitted from the host computer 100 and transmitting the information of the printing apparatus 150; a reception buffer 152 for temporarily holding all of the data received by the I/F driver 151 and serving as a buffer device of a delay of processes at the post stage; a JL parser 153 for analyzing the reception data and discriminating by a predetermined job control language (hereinafter, abbreviated to JL) whether the host computer has requested to obtain the information of the printing apparatus or the host computer has transmitted the PDL data, thereby distributing processes; a PDL translator 154 for performing a translating process of the PDL data distributed by the JL parser 153 and converting into a drawing object suitable to draw; a database 158 for storing the information of the printing apparatus set by the JL and providing the information to the JL parser and PDL translator 154; a drawing buffer 155 for temporarily storing the drawing object formed by the PDL translator 154 until it is actually printed; a drawing section 156 for generating a bit map image by actually drawing the drawing object temporarily stored in the drawing buffer 155; and a printer engine 157 for receiving a bit map image generated by the drawing section 156 and printing into a media such as a paper or the like by a well-known printing technique.
The first print data processing method has the following two problems. First, there is a problem such that since a channel to transmit and receive the print data (PDL data) and a channel to obtain the information of the printing apparatus are the same, the transmission and reception of the print data and the information obtaining cannot be simultaneously performed. Second, there is a problem such that since the print data is recognized by the JL parser 153, the print data temporarily stored in the reception buffer 152 is not recognized and management information regarding this print data cannot be returned to the host computer 100.
To solve the above problems in the first print data processing method, therefore, a second print data processing method is considered.
FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a construction of the second print data processing method. In FIG. 2, reference numeral 200 denotes a host computer; 250 a printing apparatus; and 280 a predetermined communication medium for connecting the host computer 200 and printing apparatus 250.
The host computer 200 is constructed by: an application section 201 for providing a graphic user interface to the user and generating image data adapted to a purpose of the user; a printer driver 202 for converting the image data generated by the application section 201 into page description language (hereinafter, abbreviated to PDL) data which can be printed by the printing apparatus 250; a transmission buffer 203 for temporarily storing the PDL data formed by the printer driver 202; a job packet generator 207 for generating a job packet from the PDL data stored in the transmission buffer 203; a utility section 205 for generating a management packet to obtain the information of the printing apparatus 250 and provide it to the graphic user interface and change the environmental setting of the printing apparatus 250 in accordance with a demand of the user; a logic channel controller 206 for further converting a job packet and a management packet into packet data; and an I/F driver 204 for transmitting and receiving the job packet and management packet which were further converted to the packet data by the logic channel controller 206 to/from the printing apparatus 250. In the invention, the PDL data converted to the job packet is referred to as a job packet and the environmental set data converted to the job packet is referred to as a management packet.
The printing apparatus 250 is constructed by: an I/F driver 259 for receiving the job packet and management packet which were converted to the packet data and transmitted from the host computer 200 and transmitting a management packet for reply converted to the packet data by a logic channel controller 251; the logic channel controller 251 for transmitting the job packet to a job pre-processor 253, transmitting the management packet to an information manager 260, and further converting the management packet for reply transmitted from the information manager 260 into packet data; a reception buffer 254 for temporarily holding the PDL data and serving as a buffer device of a delay of processes at the post stage; a database 252 for storing the equipment information of the printing apparatus and job information to draw a print job; the job pre-processor 253 for receiving the job packet and transferring the PDL data to the reception buffer 254 by an operation code written in a header of the job packet or setting information into the database 252; the information manager 260 for receiving the management packet, rewriting the information in the database 252 in accordance with an operation code written in the management packet and the data, and forming a management packet for reply to provide the equipment information regarding the printing apparatus 250 to the host computer 200; a PDL translator 255 for performing a translating process of the PDL data and converting into a drawing object suitable to draw; a drawing buffer 256 for temporarily storing the drawing object until it is actually printed; a drawing section 257 for generating a bit map image by actually drawing the drawing object temporarily stored in the drawing buffer 256; and a printer engine 258 for receiving a bit map image generated by the drawing section 257 and printing into a media such as a paper or the like by a well-known printing technique.
According to the second print data processing method, the job packet in a data channel and the management packet in a management channel are further converted into packet data and two logic channels are constructed on one physical channel (communication medium 280), so that the transmission and reception of the print data and the managing request can be simultaneously performed. Further, by converting into the job packet which can be interpreted relatively easily as compared with the PDL by the host computer 200 and by interpreting in the job pre-processor at the front stage of the reception buffer, all of the print jobs inputted to the printing apparatus can be managed. The information managing request of the jobs from the host computer can be satisfied.
The transmission and reception of the data and the reception and reply of the information managing request can be performed in a real-time manner by the second print data processing method and the print jobs can be managed. On the contrary, however, it is a prerequisite that the job packet generator 207 and logic channel controller 206 are provided on the host computer side. However, it is necessary to individually prepare those processing sections because an installing method differs every operating system of the host computer. If those processing sections cannot be installed, unless the print by the first print data processing method so far is supported, the print is impossible.
Further, when they are connected to a network, there is a case where the connection by the host computer which corresponds to only the first print data processing method and the connection by the host computer which corresponds to only the second print data processing method mixedly exist.
In the second print data processing method, in the case where a Net Ware server or the like is provided between the host computer and the printing apparatus and a banner (headline) page has been set, the server forms print data as data of the banner page separately from the printing system of the host computer. There is, consequently, a problem such that the job packet and PDL data mixedly exist in one job and the operation of the second print data processing method cannot be guaranteed.
It is, therefore, an object of the invention to provide a printing apparatus which can discriminate whether print data has been converted into a job packet or not and can switch a processing method in accordance with the print data.
That is, to accomplish the above object, a printing apparatus of the invention comprises:
receiving means for receiving print data; and
processing operation determining means for switching a first print data processing method of processing print data which is not converted into a job packet and a second print data processing method of processing print data converted into a job packet in accordance with whether the print data received by the receiving means has been converted into a job packet of a packet structure constructed by a header portion and a data portion or not.
More preferably, in the printing apparatus of the invention, the receiving means can receive both of the print data converted into a job packet and the print data which is not converted into a job packet.
Further preferably, the printing apparatus of the invention has data discriminating means for discriminating whether the print data received by the receiving means is the print data converted into a job packet or the print data which is not converted into a job packet.
Further preferably, in the printing apparatus of the invention, the print data converted into the job packet has identification information in the header portion, and
the data discriminating means discriminates whether the identification information is included in the print data received by the receiving means or not, thereby discriminating whether the print data is the print data converted into the job packet or the print data which is not converted into the job packet.
Further preferably, the printing apparatus of the invention has mixture data discriminating means for discriminating whether the print data which is not converted into the job packet and the print data converted into the job packet mixedly exist in the print data received by the receiving means or not, and
the processing operation determining means switches the print data processing method in accordance with the mixedly existing print data on the basis of a discrimination result of the mixture data discriminating means.
Further preferably, the printing apparatus of the invention has mixture data discriminating means for discriminating whether the print data which is not converted into the job packet and the print data converted into the job packet mixedly exist in the print data received by the receiving means or not, and
the processing operation determining means switches the print data processing method in accordance with the mixedly existing print data on the basis of a discrimination result of the mixture data discriminating means.
More preferably, in the printing apparatus of the invention, in the case where it is determined by the data discriminating means that the print data received by the receiving means is not converted into the job packet and it is decided by the mixture data discriminating means that the print data converted into the job packet mixedly exists in the print data, the processing operation determining means switches in a manner such that the print data until it is decided that the print data converted into the job packet exists is processed by the first print data processing method and that the print data after it was determined that the print data converted into the job packet existed is processed by the second print data processing method.
More preferably, in the printing apparatus of the invention, in the case where the identification information is included in the print data received by the receiving means, the mixture data discriminating means determines that the print data converted into the job packet mixedly exists.
More preferably, the printing apparatus of the invention further has selecting means for enabling the operation of the first print data processing method to be forcedly selected.
More preferably, the printing apparatus of the invention further has job pre-processor means for extracting data regarding a printing process from the print data converted into the job packet and storing into data storing means.
More preferably, the printing apparatus of the invention further has information managing means for, when the management data converted into the job packet is received by the receiving means, rewriting the equipment information of the printing apparatus stored in the information storing means or the print job information or generating reply data on the basis of the equipment information stored in the information storing means.
More preferably, the printing apparatus of the invention further has channel control means for sending the data received by the receiving means to the information managing means in the case where the received data is the management data converted into the job packet and for sending the received data to the processing operation determining means in the case where it is the print data.
Although the means constructed in the printing apparatus have been mentioned above, according to the invention, the print data processing apparatus can also support a part or all of the above construction. The invention also incorporates a print control method which is accomplished by steps similar to the foregoing means and a recording medium on which a program of the similar steps has been recorded.
According to the invention, the print data received by the receiving means and the environmental set data are distributed by the first channel control means to the processing operation determining means via a data channel in case of the print data converted into the job packet and the print data which is not converted into the job packet and are distributed to the information managing means via a management channel in case of the environmental set data converted into the job packet. The processing operation determining means automatically switches the operation of the printing system on the basis of the print data of the data channel in accordance with a discrimination result about whether the print data is the print data converted into the job packet or not. Even in the case where the print data converted into the job packet and the print data which is not converted into the job packet mixedly exist in the print data, the processing operation determining means switches the operation of the printing system in accordance with the mixedly existing print data. That is, any one of the print data described by an ordinary page description language and the print data converted into the job packet can be selectively processed by the processing operation determining means. Even in a printing system which does not have job packet generating means and second channel control means, it is possible to cope with the printing process.
According to the invention, by further having selecting means for enabling the first print data processing method of processing the print data described by the page description language to be forcedly selected, an instruction from the operator can be preferentially reflected irrespective of an automatic recognition by compatible operation determining means. Thus, even in the case where although the host computer presumed the first print data processing method, the printing apparatus judges the data as data of the second print data processing method and processes it, a process can be designated as print data in the first print data processing method.